Cancer and Cat
by Rainbowkiwii
Summary: Rated T for later chapters. When Nepeta meets the new kid and discovers he has cancer, she decides to make his life less miserable. Yes, I am aware this summary is bad.
1. Chapter 1

Cancer and Cat

First of all... Fail title is fail! xP Anyway, this story is a humanstuck AU. Also, I'm just gonna warn you right now that there is character death. So on that depressing note, try your best to enjoy what I've written xD and remember that I loves you all. Oh by the way, sorry if Karkat and Nepeta seem a little OOC.

Disclaimer: I believe Lord Hussie is to thank for Homestuck.

Chapter 1

Your name is Nepeta Leijon, you are eleven years old, and you are currently playing a fun role playing game with your best friend Equius. He is the brave and strong stallion while you are the small and cute kitty cat. You both go on your imaginary quest until the school bell rings, signaling the end of recess. You are very disappointed that you couldn't save the damsel in distress before the terrible dragon got to her, but you wave Equius away as you skip merrily to your second to last class of the day. The sun is shining and you wonder what could possibly be any more perfect about this day. However, a cry of frustration cuts you off in mid thought, and you look over at a very short and angry kid. You know this child to be the new kid, who moved from two states over. He's not very talkative to other kids, and always seems to be grumbling about something. Also, his appearance is somewhat odd for a kid his age. For one, he looks like he's going bald. His hair is also a very pale, almost white color. His skin is even paler, and his eyes are like rubies, shinning in the early morning sun. He may be different, but it doesn't matter to you. As long as he's nice, you think you two could get along nicely. You slowly approach the boy, who looks at you with disgust.

"What the heck do you want?" he snaps at you. You are taken aback by his crabby attitude. He looks at you impatiently, expecting an immediate answer.

"Well, I... just, uh..." you sputter, not really sure what to say. His expression grows even more enraged and he yells at you. He's practically the angriest fifth grader you've ever seen.

"Well get on with it! If you're gonna comment on my lack of hair, or how my eyes are red, just frickin' do it already!" You stare at him, confused.

"Why would I do that? I just wanted to say hello." you say, unsure of what he'll do next. He is shocked at your comment, and his expression softens.

"Oh... well ok then. What's your name?" the boy asks, not really meeting your eyes. You smile and respond.

"My name's Nepeta! What about yours?" you ask excitedly. He meets your eyes this time as he speaks.

"My name's Karkat." he says shyly. You giggle and he suddenly turns confused and angry. "What the heck are you laughing at?!" he practically shouts. You calm down and explain yourself.

"I just think your name is cute! Karkat. Kaaaarkat. Karkitty!" you say, testing out different ways to say it. You decide that you like the name Karkitty the best, because you love kitty cats! Karkat just sighs, obviously frustrated at you. You stop giggling because you feel bad for him. He must get a ton of questions of why he's different from most kids. Which is what you are wondering right now. You really want to ask him, but you feel like you'd be rude if you did. He sees that an internal conflict is taking place in your head, and an awkward silence has now formed between you two. You also realize that you are now eight minutes late to class. Ms. Paint will not be happy at all.

"So, uh, shouldn't you be getting to class, Nepeta?" he asks, stuttering a lot in the sentence.

"You should too Karkitty!" you say defensively.

"Well, I don't really know where my class is. Those idiots moved me today." he says with disgust. You tell him that you can help him find his class, and he looks at you thankfully. However, he still doesn't smile. It sort of bothers you, and you decide that one of your personal goals is to get the crabby kid to crack a small smile, no matter how long it takes.

After leading Karkat to his class, you skip back to your own, with a pass so Ms. Paint won't get too mad. Today's math class is very boring as usual, and you don't really get it anyway. So, you doodle, like you usually do. What your working on right now is what you call a shipping page. Nobody, not even Equius understands why pairing people together is fun, but it's purely for your entertainment. It may be a little bit silly, but you hope that maybe you can be added to your own shipping page someday, because right now you think that guys just find you too weird to even talk to. Well, except for Karkat. You think about him while your subconscious decides to make you draw him. You are so busy drawing him on your shipping page that you aren't aware that the teacher is speaking to you until a ruler smacks your desk and you jump a foot out of your seat and let out a yelp of surprise. You hear snickers and see people smirk at you as the teacher angrily speaks.

"Ms. Leijon, I would appreciate it if you stopped drawing and paid attention." You blush furiously as you apologize. For the rest of the period, you can't believe you were even thinking of Karkat. You hardly know him, yet there was something about him that was just... intriguing.

For the next few weeks, you notice that Karkat is missing from school a lot. After being gone for a whole week, you begin to worry. You decide after your last class ends that you should ask Ms. Paint about it, because it's weighed heavily on your mind for quite awhile now. When class ends, you approach your teacher.

"Hello Nepeta! What can I help you with?" she asks cheerfully.

"Well, it's about Karkit- Karkat." you correct yourself. You can't believe you almost used his pet name that he always yelled at you about every time you two hung out. Ms. Paint frowns uncomfortably.

"Well, he's... in the hospital Nepeta." she explains with some discomfort. You gasp.

"Is he okay?" you ask nervously.

"Well... I'm not sure, dear. Why don't you visit him after school?" Ms. Paint suggests, eager to get away from the conversation. You nod and she tells you what hospital he's been admitted to. You hope the poor boy is okay...

School ends, and you find yourself begging your mom to visit a friend in the hospital. After some hesitation, she agrees. When you arrive at the huge building, it is raining very hard. The rain and the dark sky affect your mood, and you feel as if something's terribly wrong with Karkat.

"Um, excuse me?" you call nervously to the nurse.

"Yes? What can I help you with young lady?" the sweet elderly nurse asks.

"Um, I'm here to see Karkat." you say.

"Ok dear. What's his last name?" the nurse asks. You suddenly realize you never got his last name.

"Uh, I'm actually not sure." you admit sheepishly. The nurse just smiles and says she'll look. You thank her and wait for her to find Karkat's file.

"Ah ha! Vantas. Karkat Vantas, Cancer Ward, room 69." she says as she points to the hall where he is. You gasp and your eyes go wide with fear. You aren't exactly sure what cancer is. All you know is that it is potentially life threatening. The nurse looks concerned, but you assure her that the shock has worn off, and that you're fine. You turn and walk down the hall toward the room the nurse told you. But the truth is, you're not fine. In fact, you fear for Karkat's life. Finally, after what seems like two of the most antagonizing minutes of your life, you reach room 69. You politely ask the doctor stationed there if visitors are allowed at this time.

"Yes, but only for 15 minutes." he says. You slowly walk in to see Karkat, who is fast asleep. You almost don't want to disturb him because he looks so peaceful, despite the fact that his face is contorted into a frown, as if he's having a nightmare. You begin to wonder why the doctor even let you in in the first place. The doctor answers as if he can read your mind.

"This boy's been asleep for two days now, but so far no one has had any luck getting him to wake up." He sighs as he walks out of the room. You decide that you'll try and get him up yourself. You cautiously approach his bedside and poke him several times, while saying his name. He hardly stirs as you do this. After trying for about two minutes, you give up on that idea and think of others. How do you get some one who's in a deep sleep to get up? Well, the prince got Sleeping Beauty up with a kiss...

You can't believe you just thought of that. You blush furiously as you look down at him. Could it be a possibility? You swallow nervously as you decide to give it a shot. You've never kissed anyone before, so this is a totally new concept. A concept you probably will not understand until high school. Okay. Calm down. Just do it like the prince did. Just lean down, and give him a small peck on the lips. Five seconds should do. Your heart pounds as you lean down slowly, and before you know it, your lips are touching his. They are surprisingly soft, and you stay for about 10 seconds instead of five. You regret it immediately, because on the tenth second, his eyes quickly open, to find you starting to pull away. His expression turns from sleepy confusion to horrified in less than a second. He screams and sits straight up, almost bonking his head against yours as he does.

"Nepeta! WHAT THE HECK WAS THAT FOR?" he yells, demanding an explanation.

"Well, the uh, doctors, they, uh, said that you weren't feeling so... good, and that you were asleep, for, a long time. So, I thought I'd try to wake you up." you stutter out. At this point, your face is as bright red as a tomato. He stares at you for a minute. You can practically see the wheels turning in his head as he thinks about this. After about another minute, his expression softens, and he mutters a small thank you. You are slightly surprised at this, but it feels good to hear the grumpy kid actually being nice for once.

"So Nepeta... how's the shipping page coming?" he asks awkwardly, attempting to make small talk.

"It's fine." you say quietly. You don't really want to talk about your shipping page. You want to ask him about his cancer. And he senses it too, because he sighs.

"I already know you want to ask me about my cancer. I understand. So, here it goes." He swallows before he goes on. "I got cancer when I was six years old. It's liver cancer. My head has hardly any hair because of chemotherapy. So far, I've been pretty lucky to have lived this long. But recently, it's gotten worse. So I'm not going to school anymore." he explains, almost tearing up. You are shocked and terrified at the same time. You want to hug him. Or give him words of encouragement. Something to make him feel better. But you're not sure what to say. So you say the first thing that pops into your head.

"I'll visit you everday Karkitty!" you offer. He looks up at you. He is shocked, but seems to be greatful of the gesture.

"That... that'd be nice of you, Nepeta." he says, not really meeting your eyes. Still, he says it with genuine gratitude. You smile, and it's decided. The Cancer and the Cat were officially best friends.

So what do you people think so far? I know it's kinda short, but it is a short story. Anyway, rate and review please! And remember that you are all my favorite people ever ;)


	2. Chapter 2

OMG YOU GUYS ARE MAKING ME SO HAPPY! xD Thank you for reading this! So, without further ado, here's chapter 2 for you! (heh heh I rhymed!)

Almost every day since that day, you've kept true to your word. The years go by and you both grow up physically, but not socially or mentally. In fact, your personalities blossom, with him being angry douche bag, and you being a squealy fangirl. On this sunny day, you skip across the parking lot, excited to see your best friend. You mostly want to show him your shipping page, even though you know he doesn't care. Actually, your shipping page has turned into three pages since fifth grade. As you reach the hospital, you almost forget that you accidentally brought your second page with you. The second page has a picture of only two people on it. You and him happen to be those people. Ever since the day that you made that pact, you've fallen in love with him, embarrassing as it is to admit. But you've kept your feelings secret, mostly because the boy's been suffering from a bad illness, and you're not sure how he'd react to you telling him your feelings on top of everything else he has to deal with.

The elevator you're in dings, and you know room 69 is only a few rooms away. When you get there, he greets you.

"Sup Nepeta. Here to tell me shit I don't care about?" he asks sarcastically. You like it when he's relaxed like this. It makes you feel good, like you have nothing to worry about. You giggle and respond to his greeting.

"Hi Karkitty!" you say. He gets mad at you for calling him that name. Your not surprised, as he's been doing that for years. In fact, you two are now freshman, but some of your old habits haven't died just yet.

"So, how was school? Boring as usual?"

"Yeah, pretty much. But I updated my shipping pages! Gamzee and Tavros are looking like a very promising couple!" you squeal.

"Nepeta, I don't give a fuck about those two. The only page I really give a shit about is the second one, because you never tell me what's on it." he retorts. He takes you by surprise with this comment. You realize that you might have to hint your feelings for him eventually. You're kind of getting tired of telling him that the second page is just an embarrassing picture of you and your cats, especially considering he knows that that's bullshit. As you think about this, you aren't even aware he's speaking to you. "Earth to Nepeta! Does that brain of yours still work or what?" he yells. You snap out of it and apologize. "What's up with you today anyway?" he asks suspiciously. You swallow nervously.

"What do you mean Karkitty?" you ask innocently.

"You've been fucking spacing out like a stoner seeing miracles or some shit." he says, not buying it.

"Well, I've been thinking about us." you say. You don't realize it at first, but the way you say it comes out more awkward than you thought. You quickly try to redeem yourself. "Uh, what I meant to say was, I've been thinking about how I visit you everyday and that it's kind of sad that I'm the only one who does. But then I thought 'if Karkitty were to ever be in trouble, I'd be there to save him!' So, I thought maybe that now we have a special connection!" you finally finish off. His expression is somewhere between confused and weirded out, and you know you've said too much. Great job Nepeta. Way to win the award for making situations awkward.

"Well, I guess I'm pretty lucky to have you, even though I don't act like I'm grateful and all that. But I'm not really sure about that special co-" Before he can finish, your lips are on his. You couldn't take the tension anymore. After about five seconds, you pull away from him. His eyes are as wide as saucers. Then, the inevitable happens. He gets angry. "WHAT THE FUCK WAS THAT FOR NEPETA? YOU THINK JUST BECAUSE IM SICK AND LONELY THAT YOU CAN JUST DO WHATEVER THE HELL YOU WANT WITH ME? WELL FUCK YOU! YOU MIGHT AS WELL JUST GET OUT OF THIS ROOM RIGHT NOW!" He calms down before speaking again. "And don't bother coming back for four weeks. I... I need some time to clear my head." he says, not meeting your eyes.

"Oh... ok." you say as your heart rips in two. You don't even say good bye as you walk out of the room. You walk down the hall, ashamed of what you did. You two had a good friendship, and you went and fucked it up. Royally. You start to brainstorm ideas to make up with him, as you would be doing for the next four weeks.

The four weeks pass by slowly, and you find yourself rushing to the hospital once again. You've finally figured out a way to make peace between you two, and you're anxious to see how it works out. As soon as you make it to room 69, you immediately sense something is off about him.

"H-hey Nepeta." he greets a bit more silently than usual. His eyes are puffy and his face is red. To you, this means only one thing.

"Karkitty, whats wrong? You look like you were crying." you say, your heart speeding up at the horrible thoughts of what could possibly be wrong.

"I'm alright Nepeta. I'm just really stressed." he says, not meeting your eyes.

"Karkitty, I think there's something you're not telling me." you say even more nervous than before. Whenever he doesn't look you straight in the eye, you can tell something's up with him. And not a good something. An uncomfortable silence forms between you two for the longest time, before he finally breaks it. His voice is so quiet, you have to really listen. But you hear it. And you almost wish you hadn't.

"The doctor said I only have a month to live."

... A month to live...

The phrase echos in your head as panic takes over.

"No... No no no no no no no! Karkitty you can't die! That's not fair!" you scream as the tears come. You sob for two minutes, until you calm down enough to let him talk again.

"I know it's not fair Nepeta. No one ever said life was fair. But, during my final month, at least I'll have you." he says, trying to lighten the mood. You smile through your tears, and promise to make his last month the best one he ever had.

The month you two share is a well spent one, even though both of you know that everyday he's getting weaker. On this rainy day, you rush to the hospital even faster than normal, not caring that you're skipping school. You burst into room 69, hoping you're not too late. Luckily you aren't, but the situation still isn't good. His dad and mom are the only ones there. His dad gives you a grave nod while comforting his mom, who is too distraught to even acknowledge your presence. You make your way to the side of the bed, and look down at his tiny figure.

"Hey Nepeta. Glad you could make it." he greets softly. His breaths are shallow but steady, so you don't have to worry about him having too painful of a death. You start to tear up, but he speaks, trying to comfort you. "Don't you cry now. I'll be alright. I just wanted to let you know that you've been a really good friend, no matter how awkward things got. I'll miss you, and your stupid shipping pages too." he says going into a coughing fit. You're trying very hard not to cry. For him. Even though it kills you inside to see your long time crush dying. And there's not a single thing you can do about it.

"Oh Karkitty, I..." But you can't continue on, because your afraid that if you do, you'll break down. He sighs sadly, and his breathing slows down even more. You know his time has almost come.

"Good bye Nepeta. Good bye everyone. Thank you all for convincing me to stay until the very end." And then, something miraculous happens. Right as his last breath is taken, he smiles. You finally break down sobbing as you realize something. Your goal that you made in fifth grade had finally been achieved. You finally made that poor boy smile, a very genuine one too.

The service is held on the following Sunday, just two days after his death. It depresses you that hardly anyone has shown up. You walk up to the casket, and there you see him for the last time. He still has that smile on his face. Tears roll down your cheeks as you place a single red rose in his folded arms. Later, you leave early, because you can't bear to see your beloved Karkat being buried.

Later that night, you are up in your room, staring at the page of you and him. The more you stare at his face, the angrier you get. You're angry at whoever took him away from you. Hell, you're angry at cancer itself. If it had never existed, you would've never met him, and you would've never spent all that time caring for someone who didn't love you back. In your fury, you rip up that page and burn the pieces. After you get that out of your system, you cry yourself to sleep, as you will for many nights to come. Stupid fucking cancer.

I'm sorry guys. I really am. But stay tuned for the epilogue and the announcement. And remember that I still love you.


	3. Epilogue

Epilogue

Your name is Nepeta Leijon, you're thirty-one years old, and you are currently reviewing the MRI of an eight year old child who appears to have brain cancer. You hate to be the one to break it to the family, but you can't hide the truth forever. You walk to the family and sigh as you reveal the poor child's fate. The looks on their faces remind you of one person: Karkat. You remember the day you found out he had cancer. You then think of the day he died. That day, you set another life goal: Become an Oncologist and try to find a cure for cancer. Originally, your dream occupation was a position at the ASPCA. But ever since you met Karkat, you've decided that you want to help kids just like him get through their illnesses. Others shouldn't have to go through what he went through.

Well, that's the end. I decided that this month was the perfect month to post this because this month is Cancer Awareness Month. Anyway, I wish I could write more, but I'm having a bit of a writer's block :/ So here's the short announcement: Please review or PM me with your OTPs so I can make a story with them :P Anyway, thanks to everyone who read this, cuz it means a lot! :D


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